The present invention relates to a switch button for use in car audio equipment, air conditioners for vehicles, and so on. More particularly, the present invention relates to a switch button coupled to a supporting member through a hinge, and a method of manufacturing the switch button.
A conventional switch button 51 illustrated in FIG. 7 is supported in a cantilevered state by a supporting member 53 fixed to a case 52 through a hinge 54. The switch button 51, hinge 54 and supporting member 53 are integrally molded using, for example, hard synthetic resins such as ABS resin. The hinge 54 includes a curved portion 54a which is formed in an arc shape.
When the switch button 51 is pressed from a direction indicated by an arrow in FIG. 7, the curved portion 54a of the hinge 54 is deflected, so that the hinge 54 is bent toward the supporting member 53. This causes the switch button 51 to move from a position indicated by the broken lines to the position indicated by solid lines in FIG. 7. With this movement, a switch, not shown, arranged behind the switch button 51 (on the right-hand side in FIG. 7) is turned on or off.
Also, in another conventional structure illustrated in FIG. 8, a switch button 51 is integrally molded, for example, with a hinge 54 and a supporting member 53. The hinge 54 is formed of a hard synthetic resin such as ABS resin. The switch button 51 is attached for pivotal movement about the axis of the hinge 54. When one end of the switch button 51 is pressed from above, the hinge 54 is twisted in a direction indicated by an arrow in the figure. This causes the switch button 51 to pivot about the axis of the hinge 54 to turn a switch, not shown, on or off.
The hinges 54 illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8 are formed of a hard synthetic resin. The switch buttons 51 are pressed against the resilient forces of the hinges 54. Therefore, a large pressing force is required for manipulating the switch button 51, thus poor switch operating response.
Also, in FIG. 7, when the switch button 51 is pressed, the switch button 51 pivots about the curved portion 54a of the hinge 54, which acts as a fulcrum. Thus, the direction in which the switch button 51 is pressed is different from the direction in which the switch button 51 actually moves. For this reason, the switch button 51 has a poor operating response.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a switch button that is capable of allowing the user to readily press and comfortably manipulate the button, and a method of manufacturing the switch button.
To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a switch button coupled to a supporting member through a hinge. The switch button and the hinge are integrally molded using a synthetic resin and an elastomer, respectively, or a synthetic resin and a synthetic rubber, respectively.
The present invention also provides a method of manufacturing a switch button. The method comprises injecting a synthetic resin into a first cavity of a mold to mold a switch button, injecting one of elastomer and synthetic rubber into a second-cavity of the mold to form a supporting member, and injecting the elastomer or synthetic rubber into a third cavity in communication with the second cavity to mold a hinge. The hinge is integrally molded with the switch button.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.